Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Poultry and Pets => The Hen House => Topic started by: Craigx on February 04, 2013, 19:33
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Hello..
So iv culled a cockerel last night, let it hang for the night, then plucked, then took the breast wings and legs off. sadly as bantam there wasn't much meat and seemed pointless to gut it completely!
Here is the pic.. before.. after..
(http://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/o781/Craig_Lloyd/SouthStaffordshire-20130201-00162_zps03084977.jpg)
then...
(http://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/o781/Craig_Lloyd/SouthStaffordshire-20130204-00166_zpsc08f36c9.jpg)
Alot easier then expected.
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Well done.
I think once you have decided the time has come, it makes it a bit easier.
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Hey
Thanks splash,
I had been worrying over doing it for a while, but yesterday i could see next doors curtains twitching every time he crowed, so last night, he was put to sleep, this morning, during the sunshine, he was done,
I wasnt sure i could eat it, but it went loverly with potatos and veg!
Craig
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at least you could console yourself that he had a good life before :)
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Well done it isn't as easy as some think. For future reference it is easier to pluck whilst still warm and then hang. :)
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hey,
Thank you, ill keep that in mind, even tho plucking while dry and cold was easy
Craig
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Good effort Craig! It's not something I've done but once I have my own chickens I will be trying out some home grown meat. Did you notice a big difference in flavour from supermarket chicken?
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hello
Daamoot; yes, tasted nicer, color was different, as seen in the pictures,
my son loved the legs lol
Craig
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I can understand that, when the time comes, it has to be done
Was it any better than a store bought bird ?
How did you cull it ?
AND what did you do with all the feathers ?
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I can understand that, when the time comes, it has to be done
Was it any better than a store bought bird ?
Yes, but not alot of meat as a store brought bird, i think my next one will have to be a bigger bird.. but now i know what todo and what to expect
How did you cull it ?
The brush method seemed easiest, me n the eldest did it, she was OK with it all.
AND what did you do with all the feathers ?
Put them into the bin? i dont know what else todo with them to be honest.
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Brush method ?
What you brushed it to death ;)
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Yes.. place the birds neck under the handle while the other holds the handle down the other pulls fast and at a angle, to make sure clean break..
Craig
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Craig the birds that you buy in the supermarket are a different breed of chicken completely, they are bred to just eat pooh, sleep and grow. They are then big enough to be culled at 8 weeks. You are raising either dual purpose or egg laying birds and they wont get to be as meaty as the meat birds.
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I still cant visualise how you did the job ?
Sorry
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hey
I know joyful, What breed is better as a dual or meat bird?
Pepsi youtube has a few videos on it
Craig
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if you want them to eat look into getting meat birds but you will need a separate run and coop for them.
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if you want them to eat look into getting meat birds but you will need a separate run and coop for them.
Why would that be ?
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if you want them to eat look into getting meat birds but you will need a separate run and coop for them.
Why would that be ?
I was just about to ask that lol
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Thanks for pointing out youtube, there are many videos on there for all kinds of culling. Think I'd prefer the brush method than cutting the spine. Did you use an actual brush or a spanner like in one of the videos?
I guess you don't want to cross breed your laying and meat birds?
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Either tht or you dont want them making friends, especially as a couple may not be there for long, those awkward questions "Were's Joe/Fred/Ethel/Freda gone ?"
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they often dont perch so can end up being pooped on and also they will hog all of the feed, your egg layers wont stand a chance of getting near it. Also as they get culled at a young age they would be on different food (chick crumb) for a lot of their time and then end up on finishers feed.
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A friend of mine kept Croad Langshans, big breed with nice large cream coloured eggs and an excellent bird to eat. We had one of her cockerels one Christmas, weighing 10lbs. Nice docile birds and not unnattractive.
If you have a skinny bird why not gut it and cook the lot, neck and all in a closed casserole or roasting bag? The meat will be reasonably tender and the remains make grand stock for soup!
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A friend of mine kept Croad Langshans, big breed with nice large cream coloured eggs and an excellent bird to eat. We had one of her cockerels one Christmas, weighing 10lbs. Nice docile birds and not unnattractive.
If you have a skinny bird why not gut it and cook the lot, neck and all in a closed casserole or roasting bag? The meat will be reasonably tender and the remains make grand stock for soup!
I couldnt get my hand inside lol...
Craig
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Well done.
I have a Welsummer cockerel to do tomorrow. I will leave him to hang for 3 days before preparing him. Not sure if I will pluck him or just skin him, it will depend on how much meat is on him. He is so flighty when I go in his run as he sees me as top cockerel with the girls curtseying for me. :ohmy: :blink:
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It is lovely to hear that so many do make good use of their 'extra' chickens. When I first started reading this forum (July 2011) there didn't seem to be much mention of the eating aspect of birds, let alone the whole business of culling and 'how to'. It certainly makes me feel more relaxed about giving my birds a good quality of life, but looking at them in a slightly more eggs and dinner prospect. However, I still love their endearing ways and character.
Well done Craig, good job done. We have (my daughter) culled ancona cockerals, but have rhode island red to go shortly which has plumped up nicely. Trouble is hubby is getting attatched to his 'mate' and is beginning to think about keeping it (yeh right!). There is only so many runs OH has time to make and I'll be needing this one in the not too distant future for breeding :D :D
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I use to do it differently to you guys . I would get a batch from a local broiler farmer just before they were cropped ! then free range them for a couple of months on fattening pellets it never paid but the flavor and size of the birds was superb ,kill in November pluck warm then hang for 4 or 5 days depending on the weather ,then in the freezer they went http://chat.allotment-garden.org/Themes/green-ornamental-pltry/images/post/grin.gif
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I use to do it differently to you guys . I would get a batch from a local broiler farmer just before they were cropped ! then free range them for a couple of months on fattening pellets it never paid but the flavor and size of the birds was superb ,kill in November pluck warm then hang for 4 or 5 days depending on the weather ,then in the freezer they went http://chat.allotment-garden.org/Themes/green-ornamental-pltry/images/post/grin.gif
I thought they would be tough if you did them when they were over a year old. How did you cook them?
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Well done Craigx :D
The leg meat might have been darker as it was a maran, our first one we did was a maran and we noticed the leg meat was dark. We have done another since and the legs were pink.
Check out this chart, it tells you which birds make good table, layers or dual purpose.
http://www.ithaca.edu/staff/jhenderson/chooks/chooks.html
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Well done the first one is always the hardest ..Good to see that there not going to waste and the best thing is you know what sort of life it had and what it was fed on ...
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I use to do it differently to you guys . I would get a batch from a local broiler farmer just before they were cropped ! then free range them for a couple of months on fattening pellets it never paid but the flavor and size of the birds was superb ,kill in November pluck warm then hang for 4 or 5 days depending on the weather ,then in the freezer they went http://chat.allotment-garden.org/Themes/green-ornamental-pltry/images/post/grin.gif
I thought they would be tough if you did them when they were over a year old. How did you cook them?
They were not over a year old broiler farmers crop at 7 to 10 weeks so mine were never more than 5 to 6 months old at harvest :)
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Arrh, He was lovely :(
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Hey wild,
before i decided enough time had passed, he was on alot of sites, so as loverly as he was, it had tobe done.
Craig
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We culled a rhode island red cockerel yesterday who was corn fed. The head came clean off, this is the second time this has happened now. Once I did the culling by hand and the head came clean off. This time I used a broom stick method and it still came off.
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We culled a rhode island red cockerel yesterday who was corn fed. The head came clean off, this is the second time this has happened now. Once I did the culling by hand and the head came clean off. This time I used a broom stick method and it still came off.
There's a knack to it. Its not just about "pulling" its about bending and pushing the bird back over itself - over the broomstick - to help disclocate the neck while you pull. Wish I could describe it better for you!
This might help - practice makes perfect!
CR55rMaBQfs
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Hello, CDave,
you explained better then me..
nuzuki if the heads are comming clean off, i think maybe your doing it to hard...
Craig
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The first time it was by hand, it wasnt my cockerel but a lady offered me a chance to kill one of hers as a practise. She said do it harder so I did.... lol
But this last time it happened (broomstick technique) the head kinda went off the edge of the paving slab we were using and something tells me not to readjust things half way through the job as he'll suffer more so just to keep going and apply the tension. I do feel the click your talking about but then I tend to pause and keep the strain/tension up just till it stops flapping/twitching and this is when the head came off. I'll concentrate on technique and lining things up right next time rather than brute force.
Thanks for the video link :)